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Ferdinand: Every Man Utd player aware of 97/98 failure

Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has revealed how every player at Old Trafford has it drummed into them not to repeat the failure of the 1997/98 team.

Back then, United had a 12-point lead on Arsenal in the Premier League race going into March and the bookies were paying out on Alex Ferguson's men retaining their crown.

But they faltered in the home straight and Arsenal went on a 10-match winning run to nick the trophy with two games to spare.

Ferdinand told The Sun: "The manager does not let us forget what happened 11 years ago.

"Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes were playing for United then and have not forgotten it either. It's no bad thing to be reminded about it. There is a healthy fear of failure which drives us on. There's a determination and a desire to do well.

"We are in a pressure situation which is where we want to be and it's who deals with it the best. We've been here before and done it before but know if we lose two or three times it can all change.